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9 Tips For Running A Successful Online Business

When you are starting an new online business, there are always obstacles that you may come across. So to make your online business a success, I am giving you 9 tips on how to run a successful online businesss. Some of these tips I am sharing is from personal experience and the lessons I learnt as an ebay seller and a blogger.

Find your niche

Ask this question before starting an online business. Do you have a passion for your niche you selected? Because recent studies have shown majority of online entrepreneurs simply give up on their online business ambitions in the long run, due to a lack of passion with what they are doing. Think long term and find a Niche that you have passion for and with some knowledge.

Have a plan

Set youself business targets, both short term and long term.

For short term goals. Ask yourself this question.

Do you have a proper reliable internet service? It’s a key for any online business.
In what ways is your online business going generate revenue? It is through selling affiliate marketing products or selling ad space through google adsense or simply products through an ecommerce site?
In what ways can you improve your online business to gain consumer confidence? For example, does the consumer who visits your store or site engages with your content or leaves quickly? Is your online store or blog eye catching to the consumer? Do you have to give special promotions to gain their confidence? In the end “Consumer retention is the key”.

For long term goals. Ask yourself this question.

Where do you see you online business in few years and how much revenue do you expect? In what ways are you going to expand this business into much larger scale in the future?

Stay focussed

Remember this online business is a journey. There will be high’s and low’s. The key is to stay focussed and not be demotivated with potential losses that you may have to face.
As an ebay seller who sold men’s and women’s wallets I had to face this reality. Full refunds due to customer complaints were part of the process I had to go through. The key is to “Stay focussed”.

Build a strong social network

The internet is a massive web and we are part of it. So let the people know who you are. Social media presence is very important for any online business to be a success. Share it through Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets to get more recognistion. More people you can get your word out, the better chance people want to explore you.

Be energetic in your social presence. Regular posting on social media and especially social forums related to your niche can do wonders to your business.

Reach for help when necessary

If you come across any issues, be it technical or otherwise, there are always people online willing to help. One such forum is Quora. You can ask questions and people will answer back. I for one, when I created this blog, had to watch tutorials on You Tube on ” How to create a WordPress website from scratch”. Remember you are not alone. Google and You Tube are your best friends in this online business.

Manage your expenses

It is quite common to lose track of your business expenses when you starting out. Your enthusiasm to grow your online business might cause you to temporarily forget your expenses. Keep a track of all your expenses and what you expect to get in return . In the end if you spend money to promote you brand , you expect to gain something from it. Spend wisely!

Study your competitors

Observe what your competition is doing. Are they listing the same product at competitive prices compared to you? What keywords do they use to rank their content? These are some questions that needed to be asked by you, when competiting with people that are in the same niche as you. Always keep in touch with the latest trends your competitors are following. Be competitive!

Don’t fear to try new ideas

As an ebay seller, I was making a small profit around 4 to 8 dolllars from each wallet sold, but I was always scared to try something new. My biggest concern was, why change when you are already making a profit. My business partner at that time wanted to sell more expensive items in our ebay store. I was against it at the beginning. But after months of contemplating, we went ahead with his new idea. To my surprise, we got a very good response from our customers and our profit margins trippled. So yes, I was wrong at the time. Don’t fear to try new ideas!

Spend time on SEO

What is SEO?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Whether its an ecommerce platform like ebay, shopify or a popular search engines like google, Bing or Yahoo, they all have one thing in common a search bar. People looks for certain keywords when they search. So SEO is all about optimizing your product or content, so that those search engines will rank them higher for those keyword words people look for.

Even though the algorithms used by ebay search engine might be different to the algorithms used by google. They all have similarities, in a way they all look for particular keywords. Finding out what those keyword are and optimizing them, is a key to gain more traffic, thus more sales.